Alex Hales of England hits out as Derwin Christian of West Indies watches on during the international Twenty20 on Friday Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty Images

Barely a week seems to pass these days without another young English cricketer being hailed as a star of the future. First Jonny Bairstow, now Alex Hales. England debutants used to be so diffident, now they take to the international stage as if they have been preparing for the opportunity for most of their lives.

For Hales, an upright and naturally aggressive Nottinghamshire opener, an unbeaten half-century in a 10-wicket trouncing of the West Indies at The Oval on Friday night came as a relief after his first-ball duck on Twenty20 debut against India at Old Trafford last month. Then he missed what he concedes was "a gun-barrel straight ball" and was lbw. "This time I was just relieved that Darren Sammy bowled that first ball where he did – short and wide," he says.

That one Sammy delivery encapsulated West Indies' shoddy display, one on which they will be desperate to improve in the second and final t20 at The Oval on Sunday evening. Many of their best players are playing Champions League by preference, and Chris Gayle has long become cricketing mercenaries with little concern for the future of Caribbean cricket.

Even allowing for that, Hales was the latest representative of an impressive new breed of young England player who relishes the pressure of international cricket, and is excited not cowed by the occasion. Jos Buttler, who threw out Devendra Bishoo with a direct hit from backward point, executed perfectly with an aim at the base of the stumps, was another example.

Hales puts it down to Twenty20, believing like his interim captain Graeme Swann that it gives youth a chance to make its mark. T20 demands, and so legitimises, adventure and experimentation, puts a high emphasis on athleticism, and is played at a fast pace naturally in tune with a fertile young mind. Decisions are often made on instinct not experience. Other attributes that might be deemed essential in the Test game – selectivity, self-denial, know-how – count for a little less.

"The young guys in the changing room have all grown up playing Twenty20 since we first broke into first-team cricket," he says. "We have learned our trade doing that. I have always had an attacking instinct since I was young. At the same time you still score runs playing proper cricket shots."

"Twenty20 has helped because you can go out there and play with freedom and back yourself. Those big decisions can be made in Twenty20 and that has definitely helped people ease their way into international cricket – they don't have too much fear of losing their wicket."

Hales accepts that, however much he might impress in T20, that "Test cricket is such a long way away". Along with the chance to make an instant impression is a vital recognition that something deeper and more fulfilling can still lie ahead. It is an important distinction.

Intriguingly, rather than preventing the emergence of Test cricketers, in England there are growing signs that t20 is quickening the process. There is evidence, too, that England's underplayed domestic t20 is achieving standards that make it a potential testing ground for international players. Next season, as it becomes a shorter, more intense, tournament, the benefits can become greater still.

It is only two seasons ago that the Notts coach, Mick Newell, gave Hales what he calls "a welcome kick up the backside." He admits: "I wasn't really training as hard as I could."

An England call-up so quickly is a sign of what can be achieved. Twenty20 tells the young, impatient talents around the country that with the proper attitude anything is possible.